George Entwistle, the BBC Director-General, appears before the Culture, Media
and Sport Select Committtee to defend the corporation over its handling of
the Jimmy Savile sex abuse scandal.

During a grilling by MPs on the Commons' Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, Mr Entwistle admitted that allegations that Jimmy Savile abused children on BBC premises were a 'very grave matter' which had damaged public trust in the corporation.

He added that it was a "catastrophic mistake" to cancel a Newsnight investigation into the Savile scandal.

Mr Entwistle told MPs that he was determined to get to the bottom of whether a culture of abuse had been "endemic" at the corporation and investigators were looking at between five and 10 allegations of serious sexual harassment related to the Savile scandal.

But he admitted that he did not know how many of the accusations were "historic" and how many involved current staff.

The Director-General also conceded that he did not yet know who had been responsible for allowing girls to be "bussed in" from children's homes to watch the presenters' shows or be taken backstage after filming, or why there was no age limit on the audience at Top of the Pops until the 1970s.

He admitted that had not watched the BBC's interview with Karin Ward, the first victim to go public, ahead of last night's Panorama documentary investigating the shelving of Newsnight's Savile investigation.

Philip Davies, a Conservative backbencher, accused Mr Entwistle of a "lamentable lack of knowledge" about the affair.

The BBC Director-General appeared to find the two-hour session a difficult experience, flinching as MPs laughed at him when he admitted that he had not thought to ask why a proposed revival of Savile's children's programme Jim'll Fix It, featuring a different presenter, had been cancelled.